The Botanic Garden. Part II. | Page 8

various insects from plundering the honey, or devouring the seed. In the Dionaea Muscipula there is a still more wonderful contrivance to prevent the depredations of insects: The leaves are armed with long teeth, like the antenn? of insects, and lie spread upon the ground round the stem; and are so irritable, that when an insect creeps upon them, they fold up, and crush or pierce it to death. The last professor Linneus, in his Supplementum Plantarum, gives the following account of the Arum Muscivorum. The flower has the smell of carrion; by which the flies are invited to lay their eggs in the chamber of the flower, but in vain endeavour to escape, being prevented by the hairs pointing inwards; and thus perish in the flower, whence its name of fly-eater. P. 411. in the Dypsacus is another contrivance for this purpose, a bason of water is placed round each joint of the stem. In the Drosera is another kind of fly-trap. See Dypsacus and Drosera; the flowers of Siléne and Cucúbalus are closed all day, but are open and give an agreeable odour in the night. See Cerea. See additional notes at the end of the poem.]
[Illustration: Dionna Muscipula]
[Illustration: Amaryllis formosissima]
The harlot-band ten lofty bravoes screen,?And frowning guard the magic nets unseen.--?Haste, glittering nations, tenants of the air,?Oh, steer from hence your viewless course afar!?145 If with soft words, sweet blushes, nods, and smiles,
The three dread Syrens lure you to their toils,?Limed by their art in vain you point your stings,?In vain the efforts of your whirring wings!--?Go, seek your gilded mates and infant hives,?150 Nor taste the honey purchas'd with your lives!
When heaven's high vault condensing clouds deform,?Fair AMARYLLIS flies the incumbent storm,
[Amaryllis, l. 152. Formosissima. Most beautiful Amaryllis. Six males, one female. Some of the bell-flowers close their apertures at night, or in rainy or cold weather, as the convolvulus, and thus protect their included stamens and pistils. Other bell-flowers hang their apertures downwards, as many of the lilies; in those the pistil, when at maturity, is longer than the stamens; and by this pendant attitude of the bell, when the anthers burst, their dust falls on the stigma: and these are at the same time sheltered as with an umbrella from rain and dews. But, as a free exposure to the air is necessary for their fecundation, the style and filaments in many of these flowers continue to grow longer after the bell is open, and hang down below its rim. In others, as in the martagon, the bell is deeply divided, and the divisions are reflected upwards, that they may not prevent the access of air, and at the same time afford some shelter from perpendicular rain or dew. Other bell-flowers, as the hemerocallis and amaryllis, have their bells nodding only, as it were, or hanging obliquely toward the horizon; which, as their stems are slender, turn like a weathercock from the wind; and thus very effectually preserve their inclosed stamens and anthers from the rain and cold. Many of these flowers, both before and after their season of fecundation, erect their heads perpendicular to the horizon, like the Meadia, which cannot be explained from meer mechanism.
The Amaryllis formosissima is a flower of the last mentioned kind, and affords an agreeable example of art in the vegetable economy, 1. The pistil is of great length compared with the stamens; and this I suppose to have been the most unchangeable part of the flower, as in Meadia, which see. 2. To counteract this circumstance, the pistil and stamens are made to decline downwards, that the prolific dust might fall from the anthers on the stigma. 3. To produce this effect, and to secure it when produced, the corol is lacerated, contrary to what occurs in other flowers of this genus, and the lowest division with the two next lowest ones are wrapped closely over the style and filaments, binding them forceibly down lower toward the horizon than the usual inclination of the bell in this genus, and thus constitutes a most elegant flower. There is another contrivance for this purpose in the Hemerocallis flava: the long pistil often is bent somewhat like the capital letter _N_, with design to shorten it, and thus to bring the stigma amongst the anthers.]
Seeks with unsteady step the shelter'd vale,?And turns her blushing beauties from the gale.--?155 Six rival youths, with soft concern impress'd,
Calm all her fears, and charm her cares to rest.--?So shines at eve the sun-illumin'd fane,?Lifts its bright cross, and waves its golden vane;?From every breeze the polish'd axle turns,?160 And high in air the dancing meteor burns.
Four of the giant brood with ILEX stand,?Each grasps a thousand arrows in his hand;
[Ilex. l. 161. Holly. Four males, four females. Many plants, like many animals, are furnished